Ranking Member Grijalva Will Discuss Legislative Priorities With National Congress of American Indians in Minnesota on Monday
Press Release
Ranking Member Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) will travel to St. Paul, Minn., to speak on June 29 at the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) 2015 Mid-Year Conference about his legislative initiatives to defend tribal treaty rights; protect Native American lands, assets, and resources; ensure accountable tribal consultation by the federal government; and safeguard tribal cultural, religious and historical resources.
Grijalva's visit will include a conversation with youth from across Indian Country and a town hall meeting with tribal leaders on federal responsibilities to Indian Country on education, transportation, housing and telecommunications infrastructure. Rep. Betty McCollum (D-Minn.), the co-chair of the Congressional Native American Caucus, will lead the town hall.
Grijalva recently introduced the Save Oak Flat Act to cancel a congressionally mandated giveaway of Arizona tribal land to Resolution Copper, a mining company co-owned by international conglomerates Rio Tinto and BHP Billiton. The giveaway was included in the must-pass 2015 National Defense Authorization Act after being pulled off the House floor twice as a standalone measure for lack of support. NCAI will consider a resolution supporting the principle behind Grijalva's bill at the conference.
Since becoming Ranking Member at the beginning of the 114th Congress, Grijalva has launched a public engagement campaign to make federal agencies more inclusive, transparent and accountable to stakeholders. His remarks in Minnesota will focus in part on the importance of including historically underrepresented communities of interest in environmental, economic and cultural policy discussions.
Grijalva has published op-eds on the need to diversify the environmental movement in The Guardian, Roll Call and The Hill and has held a series of roundtables in Washington, D.C., and California -- with more planned -- to discuss environmental justice and the need for greater federal consideration of stakeholder input on major decisions.
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